{"id":16651,"date":"2024-11-18T14:41:58","date_gmt":"2024-11-18T19:41:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/?p=16651"},"modified":"2025-12-26T10:30:40","modified_gmt":"2025-12-26T15:30:40","slug":"death_row_clemency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/2024\/11\/18\/death_row_clemency\/","title":{"rendered":"Talking turkey about the death penalty: outgoing governors and the president must use their clemency power now"},"content":{"rendered":"

On December 23, 2024, President Biden announced that he was commuting the sentences of all but three people on federal death row<\/a> to a sentence of life-in-prison.<\/p>\n

On December 31, 2024, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper commuted the sentences of 15 people on that state’s death row<\/a> to a sentence of life-in-prison without the possibility of parole. This is an important step, but North Carolina continues to have one of the highest death row populations in the nation.\n<\/p>\n

\nEvery November, it has become a light-hearted tradition for the president and some governors to “pardon” turkeys before the Thanksgiving holiday, sparing them from the dinner table. But when the nation’s political leaders take part in an annual turkey pardon, it’s hard not to think about the chronic underuse<\/a> of clemency1<\/a><\/sup> powers across the U.S., especially for people on death row.
\n\n<\/p>\n

\nIf turkey pardons are about choosing life over death, using clemency powers to empty remaining death rows is a straightforward way for elected leaders to act on those values and reject a horrific practice. President Biden and the outgoing governors of North Carolina, Indiana, and Missouri in particular can use clemency for those facing a state-sanctioned death before they leave office early next year. More than a dozen other governors can stop executions in their states, too, by exercising their unilateral power to modify or reduce criminal convictions and sentences at any<\/i> time.\n<\/p>\n

\nIn this briefing, we show that the outgoing president and some governors’ tactless traditions of granting relief to turkeys casts a harsh light on their records of granting relief to people condemned to die. Ultimately, their legacies won’t be shaped by crass Thanksgiving rituals, but by how they tapped their power to intervene in the moral atrocity that is the death penalty.\n<\/p>\n

\"Map\n<\/picture>A national patchwork of policy and practice leads to a geography-based punishment system for people convicted of the most serious crimes.<\/p>\n

Outgoing political leaders can turn the page on the death penalty<\/h2>\n

\nIn addition to being the only irreversible punishment, the death penalty — a sentencing option still on the books in 27 states and at the federal level2<\/a><\/sup> — is widely understood as the most cruel, discriminatory, and corrupt punishment, rife with due process and human rights violations. From deep racial injustice<\/a> and legal misconduct<\/a>, to horrific botched executions<\/a> and shadowy methods<\/a> of acquiring lethal drugs, to wide public opposition to many executions, the death penalty is an unpopular3<\/a><\/sup> and grotesque public experiment.4<\/a><\/sup> Almost half of U.S. states<\/a> have already abolished the death penalty, and many victims’ families oppose it<\/a>, helping to lead the way in repeal efforts<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n

\nWhile the following leaders have no record of sparing anyone from the death penalty, they still have several weeks to change course; it’s customary to wait to use clemency powers until the end of a political term, as a final boost to one’s legacy without the risk of political blowback. (And former leaders following custom have<\/i> used clemency for people on death row, sometimes with a blanket commutation<\/a>, converting all death sentences to life in prison.) But as the holiday and family-gathering season kicks off, the choice to ignore death row and spare a turkey instead is no act of festive good will.\n<\/p>\n

President Joe Biden<\/h4>\n

\nAlthough he’s extended pardons and commutations during his term, President Joe Biden has yet to use his clemency powers for a person facing the federal death penalty, despite openly opposing capital punishment<\/a> at one time. Biden can still heed increasing calls from advocates<\/a> to improve his minimal clemency record<\/a> and clear federal death row of all 40 current death sentences.\n<\/p>\n

\nBut Biden does <\/i>pardon condemned turkeys, issuing a pair of pardons each year he’s been President. These fowl, by the names of Peanut Butter and Jelly (2021), Chocolate and Chip (2022), and Liberty and Bell (2023), are greeted in Washington with pomp and circumstance, and are returned to their home pastures under the care of animal experts.\n<\/p>\n

\nGiven that president-elect Donald Trump enthusiastically supports<\/a> the death penalty — and <\/i>has historically abused the pardon power<\/a> — President Biden could spare 40 lives<\/a> immediately and reclaim the true function of clemency by commuting all federal death sentences.\n<\/p>\n

Governor Roy Cooper, North Carolina<\/h4>\n

\nGovernor Roy Cooper has only used clemency sparingly<\/a> throughout his eight-year term.5<\/a><\/sup> But even after issuing relief<\/a> to several people just before Thanksgiving — including five people convicted of murder — the outgoing governor has withheld clemency from everyone on North Carolina’s death row, which has the fifth-highest death row population<\/a> as of January 2024 with 138 people condemned to die.\n<\/p>\n

\nGovernor Cooper has, however, consistently pardoned turkeys, showing mercy toward at least eight birds since he took office. During the most recent pardoning event in 2022,6<\/a><\/sup> Gov. Cooper told spectators<\/a> that “Thanksgiving is a time to come together and appreciate the many blessings our families, friends and communities have to offer.” These words would be just as appropriate for sparing human life.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty has been in Governor Cooper’s ear since 2022, when they launched a campaign calling on him to empty the state’s death row<\/a>, commuting all sentences to prison terms before his term is over. He still has time to heed their advice.\n<\/p>\n

Governor Eric Holcomb, Indiana<\/h4>\n

\nIndiana’s Governor Holcomb has a weak record for granting clemency,7<\/a><\/sup> but could spare the eight individuals on Indiana’s death row with the stroke of a pen,8<\/a><\/sup> including one man scheduled to be put to death<\/a> in December — resuming executions in the state after more than a decade.\n<\/p>\n

\nNotably, Holcomb governs a state with a legacy of rethinking death sentences: According to the Indiana Public Defender Council, more than half of all death sentences<\/a> handed down in the Hoosier State since 1977 have been commuted, reversed, or dismissed, with Indiana governors taking clemency action<\/a> as recently as 2005. And between 2000 and 2015, few cases that initially sought the death penalty actually resulted in a death sentence.\n<\/p>\n

\nWe couldn’t find evidence of Gov. Holcomb participating in a turkey pardon during his time in office. If he refrains this year, he should have plenty of time to acknowledge Indiana’s de facto moratorium<\/a> on death sentences and extend clemency to the eight people on Indiana’s “X Row<\/a>.”\n<\/p>\n

Governor Mike Parson, Missouri<\/h4>\n

\nGovernor Mike Parson of Missouri is leaving office after nearly seven years with a decent clemency record<\/a>,9<\/a><\/sup> having cleared a backlog of over 3,500 clemency applications.10<\/a><\/sup> It’s unclear, though unlikely, whether Gov. Parson has ever commuted a death sentence; the clemency data produced by the governor’s office do not include crime or sentencing information. Nor could we find evidence of Parson participating in a Thanksgiving turkey pardon.\n<\/p>\n

\nConsidering Gov. Parson’s record of harmful policies, like bans on nearly all abortions<\/a> and on gender-affirming care<\/a> for minors, it seems unlikely that he would consider saving the lives of the dozen men on Missouri’s death row. Parson has overseen the executions of 12 people during his tenure as governor, including the execution of Johnny Johnson, a man with serious mental illness<\/a> whose clemency was supported by his victim’s own father, and Marcellus Williams<\/a>, whose advocates included prosecutors and the victim’s family.\n<\/p>\n

\nAs Parson considers his gubernatorial legacy, he should continue to use his unilateral clemency power for the Missourians who deserve better than the abhorrent practice of taxpayer-funded executions.\n<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\nWe applaud elected leaders when they use clemency to relieve people of excessive or unnecessary criminal sentences. But too often, they overlook those given the most draconian punishment on the books. Only a consistent practice of commuting death sentences and issuing pardons can combat the horrifying persistence of the death penalty. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, and their days in office numbered, outgoing leaders can spare human beings, rather than just birds.\n<\/p>\n

\n

Footnotes<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. \n

    Clemency<\/b> is an umbrella term that refers to the ability of a governor or president to modify or reduce a person’s conviction or criminal sentence, typically via a commutation or pardon.
    \nA commutation<\/b> amends or reduces a sentence, usually of a person who is currently incarcerated. Commutations are extremely rare and, when granted, often do not result in immediate release. When someone is actually released, they may still have to go through a lengthy period of supervised release.
    \nA pardon<\/b> is an official expression of forgiveness for a criminal conviction. It can restore civil rights that were forfeit upon conviction, such as the right to vote or hold public office. A pardon can be granted prior to charge or conviction, or following a conviction, but the person may or may not have been incarcerated for that conviction.
    \n      ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    Six of those states — Arizona, California, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee — and the federal government currently have a hold on executions due to executive action.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    An increasing number of Americans believe that the death penalty is applied unfairly<\/a>. Meanwhile, public support for the death penalty for murder convictions has held steady around 55 percent since 2017, but is sharply divided<\/a> along partisan lines.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  4. \n

    In addition to the rich resources we’ve already linked from the Death Penalty Information Center<\/a>, this overview<\/a> from the Equal Justice Initiative summarizes the myriad issues associated with the death penalty, including sentencing innocent people to die, the arbitrary application of the death penalty, and the astronomical fiscal cost of death penalty cases.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  5. \n

    Our friends at Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) recently called on Gov. Cooper<\/a> to utilize his clemency power during his final days in office; we encourage you to read FAMM’s letter, which contains more information about how clemency can serve as a “critical check on excessive sentencing” in North Carolina.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  6. \n

    North Carolina’s annual turkey pardoning in 2023 was canceled<\/a> due to avian flu concerns.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  7. \n

    According to the Collateral Consequences Resource Center, Governor Holcomb issued seven pardons in 2017, his first year in office, but he hasn’t issued any others<\/a> as of August 2024.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  8. \n

    Our friends at Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) recently called on Gov. Holcomb<\/a> to utilize his clemency power during his final days in office; we encourage you to read FAMM’s letter, which contains more information about how clemency can serve as a “critical check on excessive sentencing” in Indiana.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  9. \n

    Our friends at Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) recently called on Gov. Parson<\/a> to utilize his clemency power during his final days in office; we encourage you to read FAMM’s letter, which contains more information about how clemency can serve as a “critical check on excessive sentencing” in Missouri.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  10. \n

    Some sources actually call the pace of Gov. Parson’s clemency work “generous” and the number of pardons he’s issued during his term earned Missouri a spot as a “Frequent\/Regular<\/a>” grantor of pardons by the Collateral Consequences Resource Center’s Restoration of Rights Project.  ↩<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    President Biden and three governors should use their clemency powers before they leave office to save the lives of people facing the death penalty, our nation\u2019s cruelest punishment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,1],"tags":[],"coauthors":[84],"class_list":["post-16651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-briefings","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16651","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16651"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16651\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18176,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16651\/revisions\/18176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16651"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16651"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16651"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prisonpolicy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=16651"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}